


drive

by artemis_west



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic, Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Alternate Universe, Complete, Crossover, M/M, Multi, One Shot, Street Racer AU, Street Racing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-02
Updated: 2018-02-02
Packaged: 2019-03-12 13:58:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13548786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/artemis_west/pseuds/artemis_west
Summary: Exy brings the Foxes to Henrietta, Virginia, where they discover a street-racing circuit that's facilitated by Richard Gansey and his gang. Ronan Lynch is the undefeated champion of the races. And then Andrew Minyard arrives.





	drive

**Author's Note:**

> oh boy ok i wrote most of this in SEPTEMBER i'm pretty sure and then abandoned it and just never finished it and it's only one of the 20 other wips i have in my docs so i just opened it tonight and thought i might as well finish it and post it because it's been so long by now since i started it that it wasn't going to turn out like i originally wanted anyway. i haven't read TRC in a while so the characterization is probably off and idk some people don't like crossovers with trc and aftg that much but this was inspired by the movie baby driver, and like i said i wrote most of this last year so just....have whatever this is lol

Henrietta, Virginia was not known for many things. It was a small rural town, quiet and unremarkable (unless you knew where to look, unless you knew its secrets). 

But there was one thing that Henrietta did have, one thing that turned up a crowd every Friday night, attracting adrenaline junkies and thrill-seekers from all over town.

The air was smokey and smelled of alcohol and gasoline. Bright flood lights shone down on the crowd, illuminating the mass of bodies thrumming with anticipation. Engines revved all across the drag strip, hearts gunning along with them. A mosaic of sleek and shiny sports cars decorated the fairgrounds, some with doors open, devil boys hanging out of them. People sat on the hoods and smoked or passed long-necked bottles back and forth. People stood on car roofs and shouted. Seductive rock music with a heavy beat and a fast pulse poured from expensive speakers installed in one of the cars, as loud as the volume dial would allow. The music echoed across the fairgrounds, running through the veins of the boys and lighting them up like fire. Thousands of horses under hoods waited to be unleashed and run free. 

There was a crowd on either side of the drag strip, cheering on the racers with curses and taunts. Money passed between hands, bets on who would win tonight. There were newcomers to the race, strangers from out of town, and there were whispers between the regular attendees about the new faces in their midst. This one would be interesting.

On one side of the track, fresh-faced academy boys out of uniform stomped their feet in time with each other and took up a chant: “Lynch, Lynch, Lynch, Lynch!” 

On the other side of the track, the out-of-towners had set up post. They were dressed all in bright orange and stood close together, a united front, their eyes alight and curious as they took in their surroundings.

A shark-nosed BMW pulled up to the starting line of the track, a snake of a boy behind the wheel. 

Ronan Lynch revved his engine and breathed in the smell of the gasoline, letting it fuel him as if he weren’t just the driver but part of the car itself. Beside him in the passenger seat, Adam Parrish was looking out the window at the orange-clad newcomers. 

“I think they’re a sports team,” he said, sounding half-amused. “Their hoodies say Palmetto. Where’s that?”

“Fuck if I know,” Ronan replied. When Adam gave him a look, he grinned and revved his engine again, because he liked the sound and what it did to him. “Doesn’t matter where they’re from. They’re gonna lose.”

Ronan was the reigning champion of these races. 

“Do you think they came here just to race?” Adam asked. Perhaps news of Henrietta’s racing circuit had reached outside of state lines. That would be impressive, but Adam didn’t believe it. The more likely explanation was that whatever team the orange strangers played for was just in town for a game. None of the strangers carried any type of sports equipment, though, so Adam couldn’t guess what sport they played. He squinted to get a closer look at the hoodies. 

“Who cares,” Ronan said, revving his engine once again. “They’re still gonna lose.”

Adam rolled down his window for a clearer view. Just as he did so, a black Maserati pulled up beside the BMW. The orange strangers came vibrantly alive and cheered loudly, some of them pumping their fists in the air.

Richard Gansey, coordinator of these races, approached the BMW and leaned in Ronan’s window. “Your first opponents tonight. The driver’s name is Andrew Minyard, and his passenger is Neil Josten. They play for the Palmetto State University Exy team, in South Carolina.”

Exy. Henrietta’s Exy team at the nearest university was practically nonexistent, and it never garnered as much enthusiasm as the sports at Aglionby did. 

“Fuckers,” Ronan said. 

Gansey patted his shoulder. “You know the rules. Drive safe, Lynch.”

“Always do, Gansey.” Ronan’s smile showed all his teeth. 

It had been Ronan’s idea to start these weekly races, and once Gansey had seen that there was nothing he could do to stop Ronan, he’d decided he might as well join in, if only to make sure it didn’t get out of hand. Somehow, he had become the proctor, and he was now in charge of assigning opponents to Ronan (who always raced - it was never just whoever wanted to race; it was always Ronan against someone else) and collecting the fees they charged drivers. It had been Blue Sargent’s idea to make a small business out of it (“Why not make a profit?” she’d said, impressing even Ronan with the suggestion) and now it was a regular Friday night engagement.

It was usually only Aglionby boys and Henrietta riffraff that attended the races, but now they’d apparently grown popular enough to attract strangers. Gansey hadn’t spent too much time talking to the Foxes, but they seemed like decent people. Though some of them were a bit closed-off. 

“Andrew doesn’t seem like one you’d want to make an enemy out of,” Gansey warned Ronan before he stepped away. 

Adam looked at the people in the car next to them. 

Andrew Minyard sat behind the wheel of the Maserati, smoking a cigarette and looking incredibly bored. Beside him, Neil Josten sat passenger. Neil leaned forward and stared across the drag strip into the BMW, meeting Adam’s eyes. Ronan leaned forward and stared at Andrew. Andrew’s face was blank and unconcerned when Ronan gave him a snake-like smile, which made Ronan angry. His smile turned into a snarl. 

Adam and Neil contemplated each other for a moment before Andrew muttered something inaudible, and Neil sat back in his seat. Adam turned to Ronan. 

“They don’t seem worried,” Adam noted, a smirk on his face. 

Ronan’s grin was feral. 

\--

In the Maserati, Neil looked out the window at his teammates. Nicky and Matt had approached the car to talk to him. 

“So I heard some of the people talking,” Nicky said, leaning into the open window. “This Ronan guy is undefeated.”

“Andrew, you really want to do this?” Matt asked. “Coach told us not to get into any trouble.” But Neil could tell Matt was enjoying it. This environment was new to all of them, but at the same time, it was almost like the crowd at a game, and it almost felt like home.

They’d won their game against Henrietta’s pitifully small Exy team, and as a reward, Wymack had told the Foxes they could go out and explore the town, as long as they didn’t get into trouble. Nicky had immediately volunteered to scout around and see what there was to do in Henrietta. By chance, he’d stumbled upon a group of Aglionby boys who told him that if he was looking for some fun, they knew where to find it. 

The Foxes told Coach they were going out to dinner and found their way to the fairgrounds. 

Kevin had protested, as he thought anything other than Exy was a worthless pursuit, but he’d begrudgingly tagged along. None of the others had seemed to care. Really, they’d just come to watch the races and see what the hype was all about, but then Andrew had surprised everyone by buying in. He’d pulled out a wad of cash and handed it to a boy named Gansey.

Gansey stood by an orange Camaro - it wasn’t quite Fox orange, but it was close, and Neil liked it immediately - next to a girl about Andrew’s height with hundreds of clips in her hair and a patchwork jacket. Sitting on the hood of the Camaro was a pale, smudgy boy nodding his head and moving his shoulders along to the music. Neil hadn’t gotten the names of the other two, as Andrew had walked away without bothering to introduce himself, but now he saw Renee and Allison sidling up to the girl. She was the only other girl here besides the female Foxes.

Andrew hadn’t answered Matt, so Matt shrugged and tapped the hood of the car. “Good luck, then.” He grinned at Neil. 

“Don’t hurt the car,” Nicky pleaded. 

“Kick their asses,” Dan piped up, ducking under Matt’s arm. “Undefeated, huh? Well, so are we. Let’s show ‘em some Fox pride.” Neil smiled. The Foxes had indeed been undefeated in their last ten games; they were on a winning streak, and though this wasn’t Exy, Neil still felt that same burning desire to win, just as if he were on the court. Andrew flicked his cigarette out his window in response to Dan’s comment and dragged his fingers over the steering wheel. 

Neil hadn’t batted an eye when Andrew pulled out the money to race. He’d thought as much would happen as soon as they’d gotten to the fairgrounds and seen what was happening. Andrew had surveyed the crowd and the cars with disinterest, but Neil had seen the barest hint of a flicker, and he’d known they would be racing. It was lucky that Wymack had given them permission to drive the Maserati to Virginia instead of riding the team bus. 

Andrew rolled up the windows, shutting out the rest of the team. Nicky scowled at him through the tinted glass, and Dan and Matt retreated back to the sidelines, where Allison and Renee were now engrossed in conversation with the short girl. The smudgy boy was with them, bouncing on his toes. 

“Those other guys seem pretty confident,” Neil said as he looked back over at the BMW they’d be racing. The driver, apparently the one named Ronan, was making a show of revving his engine and showing off his car. The boys on the other side of the track were shouting his name and egging him on. 

The passenger in the BMW was rolling his eyes. Neil looked at him again. His skin and his hair matched the dirt on the drag strip, but it fit him, somehow. He seemed comfortable in the passenger seat, like it was a position he was used to, like it was one he belonged in. Neil watched his lips move as he said something to the Ronan guy.

It all made a bit more sense when Ronan leaned over, pulled the other boy in by the collar of his shirt, and kissed him once. When they pulled away from each other, Neil watched Ronan’s lips mouth the words, “For luck.”

The other boy rolled his eyes again, but he was blushing now. Neil raised an eyebrow.

Andrew was watching the BMW and its inhabitants through the tinted glass, his face set in apathy. He put his foot on the gas pedal and pulled the Maserati a little closer to the starting line. The BMW immediately followed. Neil couldn’t help but smirk. 

“Definitely overconfident,” he said. He’d seen how fast the Maserati could go, when he and Andrew had gone on road trips together. He wasn’t impressed with the BMW. 

And the people in Henrietta had never faced the Foxes before.

\--

Blue Sargent approached the race starting line, a homemade checkered flag in her hand. She stopped between the BMW and the Maserati, raising the flag in the air. The crowd quieted down in anticipation. Through the windshield of the BMW, Blue could see Ronan and Adam, Ronan’s eyes hard and focused, Adam with a smile for Blue. She smiled back at him. 

The Maserati’s occupants were not smiling. The driver, the short blonde one, looked bored. Blue wondered at him. The boy with the blue eyes and auburn hair and the scars on his face was saying something to the driver. The blonde one said something back to him without turning his head. The auburn-haired one stared intensely at the driver. The driver was staring at Blue, waiting for her to give the signal.

“Come on, Sargent,” Ronan snarled from the open window of the BMW. Blue scowled at him, but then she realized how nervous he was. She could see it on his face, in the set of his jaw and the glimmer in his eyes. For the first time since the tradition of these races had started, Ronan looked like he was afraid of losing. 

Who must these strangers dressed in orange be to make  _ Ronan Lynch  _ nervous about losing a race? Blue wanted to get to know them more. The only other person who’d ever been able to make Ronan worried about losing was Joseph Kavinsky, but he was gone now, and Ronan was the undefeated champion.

“On your mark,” Blue said, raising her arm higher in the air. Ronan revved his engine in an impressive show. “Get set.” Blue paused. “ _ GO!”  _ She brought the flag down, and the cars shot forward, leaving clouds of dust and dirt behind them. 

Blue turned around to see who’d pull up first. The drag strip was a mile long, and once they reached the end, they’d have to turn around and come back. 

The Maserati was just slightly behind the BMW. Blue could practically feel Ronan’s smug satisfaction from here.

She turned and went back to Gansey, perching on the hood of the Pig. Gansey took her hand and leaned back against the car to watch the race.

The girls Blue had been talking to earlier - Allison Reynolds and Renee Walker, part of the orange crowd - approached her again. They matched the car almost perfectly. The third girl Blue had seen joined them this time and introduced herself as Dan. 

“Hey,” she said. “Dan Wilds. Captain of the Palmetto State Foxes.”

“Blue Sargent,” Blue said as she shook Dan’s hand. “Captain of the Henrietta Ghost-Hunting Club.”

Beside her, Noah Czerny laughed. Renee smiled, and Allison arched an eyebrow. Dan chuckled. 

“So this Ronan guy,” she said. “He your friend?”

“It really depends on the day,” Blue replied, while Gansey smirked at her. 

“I heard he’s never lost a race,” Allison said. 

“That is correct,” Blue said. 

“He’s never raced Andrew,” Renee said politely. Blue smiled. She liked these people. 

“Do you wanna come meet the rest of our team?” Dan asked. Blue nodded and hopped off the hood of the Pig. Noah followed her, clinging to her side. 

“This is my friend Noah,” Blue said. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Noah,” Renee stuck out her hand, and she didn’t flinch when Noah shook it. “I’m Renee.”

Noah whispered in Blue’s ear, “She’s pretty. Her hair is pretty.”

“I think so, too,” Blue whispered back to him. They were all very pretty, really. Pretty and orange. 

A chorus of shouts rang out from the crowd, and they all looked back at the race. The cars had reached the mile marker, and they were turning around, racing back towards the starting line. The Maserati was pulling ahead now. The Foxes were grinning at each other. Blue saw money change hands between some of them. So they were the betting type, it seemed.

Blue followed the Fox girls back to their team. Each one of them was focused intently on the race and didn’t notice her and Noah’s presence, but that was alright. Blue and Noah were transfixed on the race, too. 

Noah’s eyes were wide, half gleeful and half worried. “Oh my God. Ronan’s going to  _ lose. _ ” He giggled. “He’s gonna be so mad.”

“We’ll never hear the end of it,” Blue agreed. 

“I’m sorry,” Renee said from beside Blue. She didn’t look very sorry, and Blue grinned.

They all watched the cars fight each other for first. The BMW pulled ahead, and then the Maserati, just by a hair. The crowd was anxious, yelling and cheering for Ronan. The Foxes were loud enough in their support for Andrew that they almost overtook the Henrietta natives. 

For a moment, it looked like Ronan would win after all. The BMW pulled ahead again, and the Henrietta crowd went wild, taking up their chant of Ronan’s last name. 

Blue’s heart thrummed in her chest. Noah took her hand and squeezed it.

Renee was shaking her head, a small smile on her face. Allison was smirking, as was Dan. The boys, whose names Blue hadn’t learned yet, were watching with mixed expressions on their faces. One of the tallest ones had his hands in his spiked hair, as if he were about to pull it out. “No way,” he kept repeating. “No way.”

The one with darker skin was biting his nails. “He’s gonna pull ahead. He has to. There’s no way he’d let this guy win. Right?”

There was one who looked like Andrew’s twin, and he was watching the race with faint interest, arms crossed over his chest. The tallest boy, with a tattoo of a chess piece on his face, seemed like he was trying very hard not to appear interested. It wasn’t working. Blue could tell he was invested in the outcome of the race. 

“Kevin Day, Matt Boyd, Nicky Hemmick, Aaron Minyard,” Dan said, noticing Blue watching the boys. She pointed each one out as she said their names, and Blue committed them to memory. “We’re the Foxes.”

“Excellent,” Blue said. She gestured to Noah, herself, and Gansey, who had wandered back to her side and taken her hand again. “We’re ravens.”

For just a moment, Allison, Dan and Renee all raised their eyebrows. Blue saw a significant look pass between the three of them, and she sensed tension, so she said, “The raven is Aglionby’s mascot. It’s the private school - you must have seen it on your way into town?”

“We passed by it,” Renee said, the first to relax. “Forgive us - the Ravens were our rivals back home in Palmetto. We have a very complicated history with them.” She smiled, and it told a story.

Blue smiled back. She’d like to hear that story. “How long are you all in town for? There’s this pizza place called Nino’s - ”

The rest of her words were cut off by a surge in the crowd. 

They were almost to the finish line, and Ronan was in the lead by the smallest margin. Blue and Noah looked at each other, eyes wide. All the Foxes fell silent. Nicky and Matt were anxiously holding onto each other, fraught with tension. Aaron was shaking his head, the hint of a smirk on his face, and Kevin had stopped trying to seem uninterested. Now, he seemed angry.  

“He spent all that money just to lose,” he said, his tone derisive. His face was fixed in a disapproving frown.

“No no no,” Nicky shook his head vigorously, eyes never leaving the race. “He can’t lose. There’s no way. He can’t.”

“He won’t,” Matt shook his head along with Nicky. They clutched each other tighter as the cars approached the finish line. 

Blue heard when it happened more than she saw it. There was a roar from the engine of the Maserati. 

At the very last second, Andrew pulled ahead of Ronan. 

He crossed the finish line first, just by the barest inch of space. 

The Foxes went wild when it happened, but for a moment, the Henrietta crowd was in shock. Ronan Lynch had lost a race for the first time. And beaten by a stranger, no less. It was unheard of. Unthinkable. 

Blue and Noah stood frozen for just a second as they stared at each other. 

“He’s gonna be so mad,” Noah whispered. Blue nodded in agreement. And then she laughed. Noah covered his mouth and laughed too, his eyes sparkling. 

“Oh no,” he said. 

“Oh no,” Blue repeated. 

\--

Ronan was seething. 

He sat behind the wheel of the BMW, engine ticking as it cooled, the crowd outside in disbelief. His jaw was clenched as he ground his teeth together. He could feel tension tightening every muscle in his body. 

“Ronan,” Adam said quietly, his voice half a warning. “Before you get upset - ”

“Too late,” Ronan snarled, and flung his car door open. Adam sighed and followed him out of the car. 

The Foxes were gathered around the Maserati as its passengers got out. Andrew was blank-faced, seeming bored and unimpressed with his win. That made Ronan angrier. Neil was smirking a little as he looked at Andrew. He looked like he thought Andrew was the greatest thing in the world. The Foxes surrounded them, patting Neil’s back in congratulations (none of them touched Andrew except Neil, who stood side by side with him and pressed their arms together). Andrew leaned against the hood of the car and lit another cigarette. 

Blue and Noah were watching from the Foxes’ side as Ronan charged toward the Exy players. Adam rushed to get in front of him, putting a calming hand on Ronan’s chest. 

“Hey,” he said softly. “Calm down.”

“What the fuck is your problem?” Ronan shouted, though he stopped walking when Adam stayed planted in front of him. Andrew was watching Ronan disinterestedly. 

“I don’t have one,” Andrew said, his tone flippant. “You’re the one who seems to have a problem.”

“Come over here so I can wipe that fucking look off your face,” Ronan gritted through his teeth, fists clenched. Adam could feel him shaking, so he kept his hand on Ronan’s chest, smoothing his fingers over Ronan’s heart. Ronan’s hand came up to circle his wrist, though he didn’t stop glaring at Andrew. 

“I don’t have a look,” Andrew replied. “You, on the other hand, do.” He took a long drag off his cigarette before he raised one blonde eyebrow and fixed Ronan with a steady gaze, as if daring him to retaliate. Ronan growled, pushing against Adam’s hand. 

“Ronan,” Adam said quietly. “Hey. Look at me.”

Reluctantly, Ronan did. His eyes were burning with anger and embarrassment over losing. Adam rubbed his hand over Ronan’s jaw, smoothing out the sharp lines. “Calm down.” 

Ronan breathed through his nose. Adam kissed his jaw, and he sighed and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he was calmer. Adam smiled at him. One corner of Ronan’s mouth quirked up in a slight smile back. He reached down and took Adam’s hand, and when he looked back at Andrew, his anger was mostly gone. 

“First time losing, huh?” Neil guessed, a grin on his face. 

Adam tensed. He didn’t need this guy making Ronan any angrier. He turned to face Neil with a frown. 

“Don’t antagonize him,” he warned. 

“Sorry,” Neil said, sounding completely the opposite. “I’ve been told I have an attitude problem. I can’t control what comes out of my mouth.”

“We’re trying to train him,” one of the Foxes with darker skin said, a sheepish grin on his face. 

“It’s not working very well,” the one with spiky hair said. 

“I think this can be a learning experience for you, Ronan,” Blue said, smiling as she moved closer to Adam and Ronan. Noah followed, hiding his laugh behind his hand. Ronan rolled his eyes. When Blue came closer, she patted Ronan’s arm and said, “Be nice. I like these Foxes, and I don’t want you pissing off my new friends.”

“Whatever,” Ronan said. He sized Andrew up again, but Andrew’s attention was no longer on him. It was on Neil now, watching him as Neil leaned in and said something low in Andrew’s ear. Ronan saw Neil press his lips just underneath Andrew’s ear, and he raised an eyebrow. Andrew stole one of Neil’s hands before he could move away and kept their fingers lazily intertwined. 

“Congratulations,” Gansey said as he came up to the group. He had his charming smile on as he handed Andrew the money he’d won. Andrew pocketed the cash silently. “I can’t say I’m not impressed. Welcome to Henrietta, Foxes.” Ronan could see that light in his eyes, that light that said he was probably going to bring up Glendower within the next twenty minutes. If Gansey liked the Foxes enough for that, it meant Ronan had no use hating them. Ronan sighed. Adam squeezed his hand.

“Thanks,” Dan said, shaking Gansey’s hand. Around them, the Aglionby boys were starting to disperse, still whispering in shock that Ronan had lost. Ronan grit his teeth. He’d surely never hear the end of it after this.

But Adam’s hand in his was enough to calm him, and he didn’t pay attention as the fairgrounds started to clear. The races were over for tonight. 

Ronan would have other chances to earn his reputation back, he knew. This wouldn’t stop him. The Foxes were just visitors passing through, only here for a weekend.

But while they were here, Ronan wanted to see about this Andrew Minyard. 

Ronan and Adam were watching Andrew and Neil, and Andrew and Neil were watching Ronan and Adam.

“So,” one of the Fox girls said, the one with the long blonde hair. She turned to Blue with an arched eyebrow. “You mentioned someplace called Nino’s?”


End file.
